-1.svg "Close Icon (3)-1")
.svg "Close Icon (3)")
- Share
-
Gender balance in corporate leadership, and more specifically, the use of quotas to achieve it, was the topic of the day at the third event in CEDA’s Women in Leadership Series on 20 September.
Gender balance on boards and at management level can drive greater productivity and higher competition. Yet with women comprising only 15.8% of ASX 200 company directors, Australia is far from achieving even close to a ‘balance’.
But should gender quotas be mandated or is merit-based promotion enough to achieve gender balance at senior levels? Speakers The Hon Pru Goward MP (NSW Minister for Women), Brian Hartzer (Chief Executive of Australian Financial Services, Westpac), Cassandra Kelly (Joint CEO,Pottinger) and Arlene Tansey (Non-Executive Director, Lend Lease) shared their personal experiences and argued from both sides of the fence.
The conclusions were varied and sometimes opposing, however, it was agreed that when a goal is set – whether it be a mandated quota or self-designated target – there will be an increased chance of success in remedying this obdurate inequity.
